Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, body-pop.

Format: Digital, CD.

Background/Info: This German duo saw the light of day in 2000 and self-released the album “Interemontional” in 2008. They split one year after and reactivated the band in 2014. They self-released a few singles and finally joined hands together with Infacted to unleash their official debut album.

Content: The album features 10 songs plus 3 remixes. The previous singles have been featured. After a somewhat Kraftwerk-ian intro cut, “Trust” (their last self-released single) reveals an overwhelming sound production mixing elements of EBM and electro-pop together. This song sounds a bit like the imaginary offspring between Covenant and Rotersand. It’s however not representative of the album, which is rapidly moving into evasive electro-pop compositions. The songs remain danceable and sometimes melancholic while the influence of Depeche Mode is easily recognizable. One of the last songs (cf. “Disease” is getting back to EBM elements.

Remixes have been accomplished by ES23, Outsized and Kaos!.

+ + + : The work takes off an impressive way by the outstanding “Trust”. This song stands for pure electronic sound intelligence, driven by aggressive sequences and great sound treatments while the clear, but charismatic vocals are the cherry on the pie. I also recommend the other ‘harder’ cut “Disease”, which might appeal to early And One fans. So Digital Energy clearly has potential, but they’ll mainly appeal to synth-pop lovers. “Mirror” is for sure their best song in the genre.

– – – : The Depeche Mode inspiration is too much at the forefront and that’s a pity as this band clearly has much more to offer. I expected a bit more out of the remixes.

Conclusion: Digital Energy is a band showing two faces. There’s nothing wrong with that, but I think they better have to leave the Depeche Mode inspiration a bit more behind.

Best songs: “Trust”, “Disease”, “Mirror”.

Rate: (6½).

Artist: www.facebook.com/digitalenergymusic

Label: www.infacted–recordings.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Infacted–Recordings/124099254321690

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Stockholm based duo Eva Kaxe – Kristian Oscarsson are back on track unleashing a new single. The Swedish formation deals with electro-pop, which finds its influences in the 80s. Kaos! already revealed a real interesting potential and I’m really waiting for the day they’ll definitely break through.

Content: “Never Ever Me” moves on with the retro-inspired electro-pop music. The title song is totally representative for the 80s spirit although with some modernism on top.

You also will find a more danceable remix of the title song plus a remix of “Zurück” (the original version was released on the EP ”Moments Of Perfection”).

+ + + : Kaos! confirms to have all ingredients to compose great electro-pop music. The music is made of great, deep sounding bass lines, an efficient vintage pop approach, a great chorus and a talented female vocalist. The new title song is worthy of examination, but both remixes are pretty cool as well. This is the kind of music that will appeal to fans of Yazoo, Erasure and co.

– – – : I just regret this is only a single and I’m really looking forward to hear a new full length by Kaos! This band now definitely deserves a bit more recognition!

Conclusion: If you’re in search of upcoming electro-pop talents, you better try Kaos!

Best songs: “Never Ever Me”, “Never Ever Me – SoundBlitz Extended Rmx”.

Rate: (7½).

Band: www.kaosthlm.se / www.facebook.com/kaossthlm

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.

Background/Info: Swedish electro-pop formation Kaos! strikes back with a new single. Eva Kaxe and Kristian Oscarsson have released two albums and several singles/EPs, which all are driven by electro-pop vibes. “Still” is their newest single.

Content: Sweden remains a prolific ground for electro-pop music and Kaos! is just one promising band among the list. The song is driven by a typical deep, pop bass line with a vintage touch on top. The chorus reveals a more catchy and melodic arrangement.

+ + + : “Still” remains faithful to what Kaos! has shown on their previous work. It’s an interesting electro-pop format carried by cool female vocals. The main evolution on “Still” is the accentuated melodic aspect running throughout the chorus. I also like the somewhat vintage-like flavor hanging over this cut.

– – – : One single song is not that much to get an objective perception about a band and their evolution in sound. I’m convinced they still can do better by accentuating the melodic aspect of their work.

Conclusion: “Still” is a well-crafted and efficient electro-pop song confirming the growing experience of Kaos!

Best songs: “Still”.

Rate: (7).

Band: www.kaossthlm.se / www.facebook.com/kaossthlm

Label: www.shortlist.se  

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Synth-pop.

Background/Info: Kaos! is a Swedish formation set up by Eva Kaxe
and Kristian Oscarsson. They got inspired by 80s synth-pop formations and have released an album and 2 singles before this new work.

Content: “Moments Of Perfection” features 5 songs, which clearly deal with good-old synth-pop influences. It’s not exactly what I would call a total 80s copy instead of an enjoyable sound that features a retro synth-pop vibe. The composition is pretty simple, but efficient. You now and then will notice a touch of melancholia hanging over the songs.

Eva sings in English, but there also is one song where she experiments with the German language. The sweet timbre of voice perfectly matches with the electro-pop sound.

↑↑↑: Kaos! sounds like a sonic bridge between pure 80s electronics and a more refreshing and contemporary style. They don’t simply emulate their favorite bands, but are just finding their inspiration in it to compose their own work.

↓↓↓ : I’m missing a catchy and more explicit melodic element in the songs while a bit more passion in the global production would have been suitable.

Conclusion: I got the impression that there’s more potential hiding in Kaos! than what they’ve shown on this EP. It sounds sweet and enjoyable, but without a real highlight.

Best songs: “What Have I Done”, “Downfall”.

Rate: (DP:6)

Band & Label: www.kaossthlm.se / www.facebook.com/kaossthlm

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com